It is common in present computing environments to connect multiple computing devices and network devices through a communication medium that is commonly referred to as a network. Such networks among devices permit the devices (or users of the devices) to exchange and share information.
A loop in a network creates a never-ending data path, typically resulting in excessive system overhead, connectivity problems, and/or degradation of network performance. Network loops make the network as unusable, and quickly finding the port(s) that causes the loop is critical in order to keep the network as operating.
Some networks run protocols to detect the presence of loops. Two protocols that are used to detect the presence of loops are the Spanning-Tree Protocol (STP) and the Rapid Spanning-Tree Protocol (RSTP). STP is presented in detail in IEEE Standard for Local and Metropolitan Area Networks —Common Specification, Part 3:Media Access Control (MAC) Bridges (The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc., New York, N.Y. 1998). RSTP is presented in detail in IEEE Standard for Local and Metropolitan Area Networks—Common Specification, Part 3: Media Access Control (MAC) Bridges—Amendment 2: Rapid Reconfiguration, (The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc., New York, N.Y. 2001). However, these protocols introduce additional packet traffic to the network, usually require configuration and administration, and usually require periods of down time in the network so that the protocol can determine if a loop is present. This required down time occurs even if it is determined that a loop is not actually present in the network.
An alternative loop detection method is by unplugging the cables in the network until the loop is eliminated. However, this manual and trial-and-error method can take a long period of time to perform and requires the individual to have knowledge of the network topology. Therefore, the current technology is limited in its capabilities and suffers from at least the above constraints and deficiencies.